Greece records €60B in card payments in first half of 2026

At the same time, despite the growing use of payment cards, fraud incidents have declined significantly, although the resulting financial losses continue to fall primarily on cardholders.

According to data from the Bank of Greece, published in its Financial Stability Report, the number of card transactions increased by 9% in the first half of 2026 compared with the corresponding period in 2025, while their total value rose by 5%. Meanwhile, the number of fraudulent transactions declined by 23%.

Payment Cards in Circulation

According to the Bank of Greece, the total number of active payment cards in circulation stood at 22.7 million in June 2026, remaining virtually unchanged compared with December 2025.

An analysis of the individual card categories shows that the number of debit cards declined by 2% to 19.2 million, while the number of credit cards increased by 3% to 3.5 million.

Within the debit card category, the number of prepaid cards rose by 40% compared with December 2025, reaching 4.1 million. This increase is largely attributable to changes in the way certain public benefits are paid, with the relevant amounts being credited to special prepaid cards issued to beneficiaries.

Meanwhile, within the credit card category, the number of virtual cards increased by 9.4%, reaching 195,000.

Card Transactions on the Rise

Both the number and the total value of payment card transactions increased in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025.

Specifically, the number of card transactions rose by 9% year-on-year to 1.4 billion, while their total value reached €60 billion, representing an increase of 5%.

The average number of transactions per card increased by 3% to 63 in the first half of 2026, up from 61 in the corresponding period of 2025. Debit cards, which are the primary substitute for cash, continue to be widely used for low-value transactions.

The average number of transactions per debit card rose to 70, from 67 in the first half of 2025. By contrast, the average number of transactions per credit card remained unchanged at 29.

The average transaction value per card also remained broadly stable compared with the first half of 2025. Specifically, the average value of transactions per debit card increased to €2,883, from €2,865, while the corresponding figure for credit cards declined to €1,309, from €1,317.

The average value per transaction across all payment cards fell by 3% to €42, compared with €43 in the first half of 2025.

By card category, the average value of a debit card transaction declined by 3% to €41, from €43, while the average value of a credit card transaction remained unchanged at €46.

The gradual decline in the average transaction value is linked both to consumers becoming increasingly accustomed to using cards as a payment method and to their growing use for low-value purchases.

Card Payment Fraud Declines Significantly

The number of fraudulent payment card transactions fell by 23% in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025.

The ratio of fraudulent transactions to total transactions remained low at 0.01%, equivalent to approximately one fraudulent transaction for every 9,300 transactions.

The total value of fraudulent card transactions also declined, falling by 14% to €10.6 million, from €12.3 million in the first half of 2025.

The ratio of the value of fraudulent transactions to the total value of card transactions remained at a low 0.02%, equivalent to approximately €1 in fraudulent transactions for every €5,700 in total transaction value.

An analysis of fraud by transaction channel — ATMs, point-of-sale (POS) terminals and card-not-present (CNP) transactions conducted remotely — shows that remote transactions continue to account for the largest number of fraudulent incidents.

In the first half of 2026, the number of fraudulent transactions by channel amounted to:

• ATMs: 2,108 fraudulent transactions.
• POS terminals: 21,180 fraudulent transactions.
• Remote card-not-present transactions: 130,898 fraudulent transactions.

Compared with the first half of 2025, fraudulent transactions declined by 24% at ATMs and by 26% in remote card-not-present transactions.

Online Transactions Account for Most Remote Fraud

Within the category of remote card transactions, most fraudulent incidents involved online payments.

Financial losses resulting from fraudulent transactions declined by 16% in the first half of 2026 compared with the corresponding period of 2025, falling to €9.6 million from €11.5 million.

The allocation of these losses among the parties involved in the transactions, according to their respective responsibility, shows that cardholders and card users bore 62% of the losses. Payment service providers accepting card transactions accounted for 30%, while payment card issuers bore the remaining 8%.

Despite the overall decline in fraud incidents and associated financial losses, the distribution of losses highlights the continued financial burden on cardholders, who accounted for the largest share of the losses recorded during the period.